Transfusion of mouse RBCs rescues the vascular defects in SCD mice. (A) BM vasculature structures in transfused mice were analyzed by 3D confocal microscopy after staining femurs with specific antibodies against Sca-1 and endoglin, as described in Figure 1A. Representative images of the femoral diaphyses from 3 independent experiments. Grid scale: 1 unit = 155 μm. (B) Representative 2D images of femoral thin sections stained with specific antibodies against Sca-1 and endoglin by LaSC from 3 independent experiments. (C) LaSC analysis of Sca-1⁺ area in the BM, plotted as shown in Figure 1C (n = 3; 14-16 weeks old; 1 female mouse and 2 male mice). **P < .01. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with Tukey test for multiple comparisons. (D) Immunoblot (IB) analysis with specific antibodies against VEGF-A, Ang 1, Ang 2, and VCAM-1 of BM exudates from AA mice and SS mice treated with vehicle or RBC transfusion for 6 weeks (left panel). Immunoglobulin G (IgG) light chain (L chain) was used as a loading control. One representative gel of 6 with similar results is shown. Data from densitometric analysis are shown in the bar graph as protein intensity relative to IgG (right panel). Ang 2 represents immature and mature Ang 2 forms. n = 6 from each strain (12-15 weeks old; 3 female mice and 3 male mice). Data are mean ± standard error of the mean. *P < .05 vs AA mice, °P < .05 vs vehicle-treated SS mice, 2-way ANOVA with Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons. AU, arbitrary units, M.W., molecular weight.